


A Question and a Promise

by Chess_Blackfyre



Series: Spencer Family Case Files [1]
Category: Psych (TV 2006)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Humor, Maddie has a sister
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:22:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26383321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chess_Blackfyre/pseuds/Chess_Blackfyre
Summary: “Huh,” she handed the ring back to him. “You’re serious.”The beat cop crossed his arms. “You think I’m joking about this?”“No, that would imply you had a sense of humor.”Or, Henry wants to propose to Maddie, but first there's a matter of tradition to attend to.
Relationships: Henry Spencer/Madeleine Spencer
Series: Spencer Family Case Files [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1917421
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	A Question and a Promise

“I want to do this the right way,” Henry reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring box, lifting back the lid and handing it over for inspection. “I’m here to ask for your blessing.”

Jeanie Caiman’s eyebrows nearly hit her hairline, and she glanced between him and the ring as if trying to decipher a complex riddle. When she picked it up, it was if she was half-expecting the thing to bite her. Henry watched as she turned it this way and that, eyes narrowing like an appraising pawnbroker. The diamond caught the light of the nearby desk lamp. 

He had tracked her down to a private study room at the university library. It was the most likely place she’d be after checking her dorm room. Henry knew where it was, of course, having only been dating Maddie a month before being drafted into helping the younger Caiman sister move into her dorm room. (He’d grumbled as if he wasn’t already wrapped around her little finger and liked the fit). Henry was glad, actually. He preferred to have this conversation without the prospect of nosey roommates overhearing his business.

“Huh,” she handed the ring back to him. “You’re serious.”

The beat cop crossed his arms. “You think I’m joking about this?”

“No, that would imply you had a sense of humor.”

He huffed, but said nothing. There was still such a thing as manners, as infrequently as the younger Caiman sister seemed to remember them.

“So, as I have class in—“ she looked over his shoulder at the wall clock. Well, squinted would be a better word for it. “—half an hour and still have a good twenty pages of reading to get done, I suppose I’ll have to make this quick.”

Henry rolls his eyes. “A simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and I’ll be out of your hair.”

“No,” she sighed, stuck in a bookmark, and gave him her full attention. “This is too important.” Something shifted, and suddenly the undergraduate leveled him with a look that made his spine straighten and feel like a bug under a microscope. “Before I give you an answer, I have a few questions of my own.”

He did not shift from foot to foot or fidget in any way. “Fine.”

“Firstly: do you acknowledge that the very practice of asking for permission for a woman’s hand in marriage is an inherently patriarchal tradition wherein a woman is implied of as a piece of property to be ‘given’, rather than as a fully formed human being with thoughts feelings and opinions of her own?"

“…yes?”

A nod. “Good. Now, scenario one: you’re at home and the phone rings. It’s our mother and she asks you to ‘be a dear and put Madeleine on the phone’ as ‘it’s important’. What do you do?”

“Is she there at the time?”

“Yes.”

“I tell her Maddie isn’t home but I’d be happy to take a message.” Their mother was a narcissistic harpy he’d only had the displeasure of meeting twice. Maddie, despite knowing her mother’s faults, and how emotionally draining it was to talk to her would still feel obliged to talk to do so. Mrs. Caiman would invariably drag out that little telephone chat for as long as she could, uncaring of the fact that her daughter was a graduate student with things like tests to study for.

Jeannie nods. “Scenario two. You’re at a policeman’s ball—“

“We don’t do those.”

“—whatever random fancy party you’re both attending. The kind that’s good for schmoozing with big important people for career stuff. During some part of the evening, you’re sitting at the table to eat. They’ve just brought out fine cuts of steak. But uh-oh, Maddie leans over and whispers to you that her period has started unexpectedly.”

“I thought those things happened on a regular schedule?”

She sighs and shakes her head. “Some women’s are, some aren’t. Maddie’s is pretty regular, but our bodies are already punishing us for not getting pregnant by having us bleed through our pants, so why do it when we’re expecting it. Anyway, what do you do?”

Henry mulls it over. Based on a few off-hand comments Maddie had made over the years, he knew she had a heavy flow so unless she was wearing black, the menstrual blood stain would probably be noticeable the moment she stood up. Offering her his suit jacket or any other kind of cover up right away would just draw attention to the problem.

The seconds tick by, and Jeanie sits there in silence for his answer.

“I ‘accidentally’ spill a drink on myself—something that would stain, like red wine. I then make a fuss about it so no one notices the stain as Maddie and I head to the bathroom to clean up. I follow right behind her to block the view. We figure things out from there.”

An approving smirk. “What’s favorite kind of pie, apple or blueberry?”

“Trick question, it’s lemon maranguine.” Did she think he was an amateur? 

“What’s her favorite thing to eat when she’s sick?”

“Jello. The green kind. Never red, she hates it for some reason."

The smile is a touch more genuine this time before she turns to the desk and flips the book back open. “Fair warning. I’m probably going to keep busting your ass, even after you get married.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything diff—wait, did you just say ‘after’?”

Jeanie wasn’t looking at him any more, now back to giving the textbook her full attention. “You’re never going to be a detective if you’re that slow on the take.” She raised a hand and lazily shooed him out. “Now go, do whatever it is that’s going to cause Maddie sigh dreamily into the phone when she calls to ask me to be her maid of honor. I have a class to prep for, and a speech to write.”

Henry didn’t need to be told twice. Slipping the ring box back into his pocket, the cop couldn’t help but smile as he left the library.

(Unbeknownst to him, Jeanie was smiling almost as much as he was. Almost.)

* * *

“—and Henry; if you break my sister’s heart, I _will_ slash all of your tires. And yes, I am fully aware that I’m saying this in front of a room full of cops.” She smiled, earning a few laughs. “But seriously, Maddie, I love you more than life itself, and I wish you all the happiness you deserve. Henry, welcome to the family.“ Jeanie lifted her champagne glass. “To the bride and groom!”

“To the bride and groom!”

**Author's Note:**

> Now, for a light touch of angst:
> 
> Henry Spencer categorically did not believe in ghosts. In no way shape or form did he believe that the spirits of the departed roamed the Earth after death to carry out unfinished business. But the morning after the divorce papers were signed, he still went out and checked his tires. Just in case.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed that! I wanted to challenge myself with some flash fiction, and my Psych fic is one of my more sadly neglected projects. Jeanie ended up being a lot of fun to write
> 
> If you have any thoughts, questions or concerns comment below and let me know!


End file.
